The Messenger: A publication of Trinity United Methodist Church

Transcription

1 The Messenger: A publication of Trinity United Methodist Church Calendar of Events Sunday, January 15 8:30 am Worship 9:00 am Solid Grounds 9:30 am Sunday School/CATCH 10:45 am Worship 5:30 pm Youth Monday, January 16 1:00 pm Line Dancing 5:30 Sarah Circle to Jason s 6:30 pm Sarah Circle (Serendipity) 7:00 pm Esther Circle (Walls) Tuesday, January 17 6:30 am Men s Bible Study 9:00 am Tues. AM Bible Study 9:30 am Strong Women 6:00 pm UMM (Martin Hall) Wednesday, January 18 5:30 pm WNF (Martin Hall) 6:00 pm CATCH Class (Triune) 6:00 pm Prayer Shawl Guild 6:30 pm Choir Rehearsal* Friday, January 20 9:30 am Strong Women Sunday, January 22 8:30 am Worship 9:30 am - Sunday School/CATCH 10:45 am - Worship* 5:30 pm All youth Monday, January 23 1:00 pm Line Dancing Tuesday, January 24 6:30 am Men s Bible Study 9:00 am Tues. AM Bible Study 9:30 am Strong Women 10:00 am Pearle McCain (O.Door) *childcare available **childcare available by request Check out our website for more information about activities and events at Trinity. CDs of the entire worship service are available in the church office, or go to the listen/watch online section on our website. Dear Friends, During the Christmas holiday, we visited the Laman Library train exhibit with our boys. There were little electric trains, with all kinds of real houses in between the rail lines, weaving the tracks from table to table, going over bridges, steam puffing out of one engine, one train marked Polar Express, remote controls handling factory work, and fire engines parked out front a house that had been saved from flames, but still (fake) smoldered. It was Snow Village collectors meet electric train connoisseurs. I enjoyed the display because of its miniature neighborhoods and the bygone era it brought back to life. My mom rode the train to college in Alabama. I ve never ridden a real train anywhere. It s true we still have trains, some high speed in big cities, but most of us don t use the train. We can travel most anywhere faster in some other way, even through our digital devices. Travel has changed. The U.S. Post Office is changing. Charitable giving has changed. Football has changed! To discuss church change, we held a church-wide meeting last Sunday morning to share what our team learned at the Leadership Institute we attended last September at the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection (COR). As a remarkable and fast-growing church, COR is host annually to other churches from all over the country who want to learn how to commit themselves to changing lives, transforming communities, and renewing the church. To explain what we learned at COR and what we need to change at Trinity so that our church can experience growth again, I wanted our members to see where we ve been. In the last twelve years, we have lost an average of 23 worshipers each year. (Worship attendance is the best indicator of a church s health, not membership.) We also learned that the UMC and Trinity, with an average age of 50-something, will be extinct in the next half-century if trends continue. As Rev. Adam Hamilton says, people are not leaving the Methodist church; we are going to the big church in the sky! So our task is to reach out to people who need Christ and don t yet have a relationship with Christ and a community of faith. I asked our members several questions. How many of you are satisfied with the Trinity does church? Most raised their hands. That s good for us, but what about people beyond our walls? I then asked. If you are over and have grown children or even grandchildren, raise your hand if they do not attend this church. Raise your hand if you have grown children or grandchildren who don t attend a UMC. Raise your hand if your children or grandchildren don t attend church anywhere. By the time I finished my questions almost every hand was raised. What this means is that Trinity, and the rest of the UMC, must do a better job of reaching nonreligious people and nominally religious people. (continued on page 9)

2 BOOKS FOR BRADY A Huge Success! Trinity s Fourth Annual Books for Brady Campaign was a huge success. This initiative provides a new book for Christmas for each child at Brady. Your contributions of new children s books or funds for the purchase of books made this possible. Each child will choose a book from those we delivered with the help of the teachers and reading coaches. Any extra books will be used by the reading coaches throughout the school year as resource materials and incentives for the students. THANK YOU to all who contributed and made this project such a success. This is very beneficial to the students and is greatly appreciated by the teachers and staff at Brady.~ The Crossroads Class January 10, 2012 Worship Opportunities 8:30 am & 10:45 am Solid Grounds 9:00 am Sunday School 9:30 am Sermon Series: Why? Making Sense of Suffering, Evil and God s Will January 15 Making Sense of Unanswered Prayers January 22 Making Sense of God s Will for My Life January 29 Embracing God s Prevailing Love Next Sermon Series: Love Stories of the Bible WEEKLY We are sending out an out each week on Thursdays that highlights the latest happenings at Trinity. We have had a few individuals say they are not receiving these s. We suspect that due to the large number of recipients, some providers are tagging these s as Spam and auto routing them to a Spam or Junk file. The easiest way to fix this it appears is for you to add trinity@tumclr.org to your address list. It is also possible that we simply do not have your address. If you feel we may not have your current address please send an to trinity@tumclr.org and ask that the be added. Mugging at Trinity We have recently begun sending coffee mugs to all first time visitors. In each mug is a short thank you note for visiting Trinity and a card with the times of our services and the next sermon series. If you would like to purchase a mug for yourself or as a gift for someone, they are available in the office for $7. Do you ever wonder what other religions believe about sin, forgiveness, life beyond death, the nature of God and other aspects of our Christian faith? Do you wonder how we Christians can be true to our faith and at the same time accept and respect other religious traditions? These are some of the questions to be explored in the Tuesday Morning Bible Study beginning January 17 at 9:00 in the Searchers Classroom. Join us as we consider our own beliefs and those of others through our study of the Bible and Paul Stroble s book What Do Other Faiths Believe? Books will be available in the church office and at the first class session. For more information contact Georgiana Soderberg at or glsoderberg@att.net. The Searchers Sunday School Class is beginning a study on Ecclesiastes on January 15 th and all visitors are welcome. The United Methodist Men will meet Tuesday, January 17 in Martin Fellowship Hall All men of the church are invited to share in delicious venison chili prepared by Eddy Peters. Visitors always welcome! Call to make reservations.!

3 PANCAKES AND ASHES Wednesday Night, February 25 Pancakes - Martin Hall at 5:30 pm Ash Wednesday Service-Sanctuary 6:30 pm Sponsored by the Miracle Team. Donations benefit 2012 Lenten Missions (See related article in this newsletter) New Study To Begin Join Adam Kirby as he begins an 8 week study entitled Practical Divinity, a closer look at the Wesleyan movementand rise of American Methodism. This study is open to anyone who is hungry for a deeper understanding of their Wesleyan roots and heritage. We will meet Wednesday nights after WNF dinners from 6:30 to 7:30 in the Foundations classroom. The class will begin February 29 and last for six weeks. If you are interested or have questions please contact Adam Kirby at adamakirby@gmail.com PRESCHOOL REGISTRATION Trinity Methodist Preschool will begin enrollment for the school year on Thursday, January 19. We will have a one week priority enrollment period for our current families and church members and will be on a first-come, first-served basis. Open enrollment for all new families will begin on Thursday, January 26. TMP offers preschool classes for 2, 3 and 4 year old children as well as Mother s Day Out classes for infants (6 months +) and toddlers. Preschool children engage in hands-on learning through theme-based curriculum modeled on the Arkansas Early Childhood Education Framework. For more information please contact the Preschool office at Coming on Sunday, January 29! A Cokesbury Hymn-Fest Triune Classroom, 4 5 p.m. Do you love singing from the beloved Cokesbury Hymnal? This small group is for you! Join with others who treasure this important part of our Methodist musical history, and we ll enjoy singing all of our old favorites on the last Sunday of each month. No vocal training needed --- Just a love of singing praises to God!

4 TRINITY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH ADVENT 2011 Trinity Chancel choir presents Child of Peace on December 18, Candles, Carols and Communion, Christmas Eve 2011.

5 Wrapping gift for Salvation Angel Tree recipients. Christmas Eve Eve at Trinity Transitions Sunday School sings carols at the Snyder Christmas Open House. Living Nativity as portrayed by the Trinity Staff and friends.

6 Trinity Presents Ken Medema in Concert Sunday, February 12, 6:00 p.m. Tickets available in the narthex after both services 1/15/12; and after second services only the following 4 Sundays. Tickets also available by calling Ken Medema has been doing musical events for over 30 years now. Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1942, Ken has always been unable to see with his physical eyes. His sight is limited to distinguishing between light and darkness and seeing fuzzy outlines of major objects. As a kid Ken was not widely accepted, and spent a lot of time by himself. Because he has lived with some degree of being different all his life, Ken has some sympathy for people who have been disenfranchised, whether they are disabled or politically oppressed or whatever. Music early became a major component of Ken's life. He started banging on the piano when he was five years old, making up crazy little fantasies on his mom's piano. At age eight Ken got a wonderful teacher who taught him the classics with Braille music and taught him to play by ear. She also taught him to improvise. Every time he learned a piece she would tell him, "Now you can improvise in that style." So music became his second language. After graduating from high school Ken studied music therapy at Michigan State University in Lansing, concentrating on performance skills in piano and voice. He worked as a music therapist in Fort Wayne, Indiana; returned to Michigan State for a master's degree (1969); and then worked for four years as a music therapist at Essex County Hospital in New Jersey. It was while employed there that he began writing and performing his own songs. He had a bunch of teenagers who were really hurting, and started writing songs about their lives. In 1973, Ken left work as a therapist and began a career as a performing and recording artist. He recorded albums for Word and Shawnee Press, then in 1985 founded Brier Patch Music, an independent recording, publishing, and performance-booking company. Ken, and his wife Jane, have been married since 1965 and live in the San Francisco Bay area of California. They have two grown children, Aaron and Rachel. Be sure to join us for an exciting evening of piano and inspiring vocals with Ken Medema on February 12, 2012! Yoga for Kids at Trinity Trinity United Methodist Church will begin offering preschool-aged children a Mom (or Dad or Grandparent) and Me Yoga class on Monday, February 6 th. Place: Martin Hall Time: 11:35am-12:10pm each Monday Cost: $35.00 per month (yoga mats provided) Instructor: Rhonda Robinette, a certified Rainbow Kids Yoga instructor More information: contact Rhonda at (rhonda@littlerockyogis.com) or Mr. Paul at (powen@tumclr.org) Registration forms available in the church office or on the Trinity website (

7 MIRACLE TEAM NEWS Happy New Year and Thanks from the Miracle Team Trinity s family is generous and loving. Our annual missions report presented at Ingathering showed that Trinity donated $46,904 in cash and 5,788 hours of Mission Service during the past year. This was an increase from $40,909 and 5658 hours in Since that report, we have donated books and Holiday celebrations for Brady Elementary, gifts and service to Salvation Army Angel Tree, a wonderful luncheon for the children and families at Methodist Family Health Arkansas CARES complete with Santa photos, and over $6500 in Christmas Eve donations to Methodist Family Health and Haiti children s orphanage, and more. Thanks we re in awe! The Miracle Team OUR HOUSE VOLUNTEERS NEEDED This year Trinity is continuing to serve a dinner meal for the residents of OUR HOUSE on the second Sunday evening of each month. OUR HOUSE provides the working homeless individuals and families with shelter, housing, job training, education, free childcare and summer youth programs, in order to equip them with the skills to be successful in the workforce, the community and their own families. We need small groups, Sunday school classes, or friends to volunteer to be responsible for cooking and serving this meal. OUR HOUSE is located at 302 east Roosevelt Road. They have a full service kitchen if you prefer to prepare the food there. The meal is served at 6:00 pm. We usually serve between 80 and 90 people each time. Food expenses can be reimbursed (up to $200) by turning in your receipts to the church office. There is a sign up sheet in the missions information area across from the youth director s office. PLEASE CONSIDER SIGNING UP FOR A SUNDAY For more information call Becky Matthews at or Warming Center at CanvasCommunity UMC CanvasCommunity UMC in downtown Little Rock has been asked to be the official emergency warming shelter again this year if there s need. No dates have been set because it s based on weather. Helping Canvas Community prepare for this service is a way for Trinity to respond to a very important need in our community. Help is needed in many different areas. People are needed to help staff the center during the day and overnight. There are also needs for meals, blankets/ sleeping bags, transportation, shower locations, underwear/socks (no other clothing needed), snack supplies, clean up crews, and dollars. Talk with your Sunday School Class or family about how you can help staff, prepare meals, clean up, or donate funds. You may bring blankets/sleeping bags, underwear or snack supplies to the Miracle Team area or make financial contributions through the church office. Your actions could mean the difference between life or death for those in need. For questions or to sign up for service, please contact Jamey Bentley at jbentley@canvascommunityonline.org Thank you for caring and helping to make miracles happen. Nurses Needed Registered nurses are needed to volunteer at Shepherd s Hope Free Medical Clinic at Oak Forest United Methodist Church on first Thursday (5:30) or third Tuesday (6:00) nights. Clinics end by 8:00 9:00. You would not need to volunteer every month. Please call Cindy Crone at or if interested or for more information. We need you or, recruit a friend! Nominations for Lenten Offering Beneficiary Due February 5 th Special Lenten Offerings collected at Trinity this year will be donated to a local organization in need, a conference-endorsed project, and the Central Conference Pension Fund for retired Methodist ministers and their widows living in poverty in Africa and Central Asia. The Miracle Team would like to hear from you about local organizations that need our help. Easy, one page nomination forms are located in the Church office or Welcome Center. Completed forms are due to the Miracle Team mailbox in the Church office by Sunday, February 5 th. Please take time to nominate groups you are involved with or know of their need. Also, save the date for our 5:30 Pancake Supper on February 22, 2012 just before Trinity s Ash Wednesday Service to be held in the sanctuary at 6:30 pm.

8 SOUP-ER SUPPER DECEMBER 4,2011 Second Place Winner, Carol Meyerdirk Chicken Noodle Soup Homemade noodles Sam s club roasted chicken, chopped Boil water in a large pot with celery & onion for several hours (Take celery & onions out if kids won t eat ) Add about ½ teaspoon of poultry seasoning 1 cube of Knorr chicken bouillon (found in Mexican food aisle) Add noodles and cook until soft then add chopped chicken Sprinkle with parsley and enjoy. My grandmother taught me how to make noodles many years ago. I call this my comfort food because it makes enough to share. Trent Roberts announces winner of Soup-er Supper competition. First and second place recipes below. The third place winner, chili by Charlie Kerr, will be printed later. First Place Winner, Allison Richardson Ravioli Soup 1 pound sausage 2 cups water 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes 1 6 ounce tomato paste ½ - 1 cup chopped onion 1 2 cloves (or equivalent) minced garlic ¾ teaspoon dried basil ½ teaspoon dried oregano ½ teaspoon onion salt ½ teaspoon sugar ½ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon pepper ¼ teaspoon dried thyme 1 package (9 ounces) refrigerated (not frozen) cheese ravioli Grated Parmesan cheese Brown sausage, drain and set aside. In a Dutch oven, combine water, tomatoes, paste, onion, herbs and seasonings. Bring to boil and reduce heat. Add sausage, cover and begin to simmer. Cook ravioli according to package. Drain and add to soup mixture. Simmer for 30 minutes. Serve and top each bowl with Parmesan cheese. Santa makes a surprise visit to Soup-er Supper. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ OFFICE VOLUNTEERS NEEDED We still need volunteers in the office at specific times: Tuesday morning and afternoon Thursday morning Friday afternoon If you could help at any of these times, please call Laura Hofman in the church office,

9 continued from page 1) A nonreligious person is someone not affiliated with a faith community, but may consider himself spiritual. He may not be interested in organized religion. A nominally religious person is someone who is a part of a faith community, but needs the church to grow into a deeply committed Christian. That s a lot of us who are already in church! In the coming year, I want to see Trinity focus its financial, people, and spiritual resources toward reaching nonreligious and nominally religious people better. We re already worshiping, on average, 74 more people than last year. I d like to see us reach 500 in worship by the end of the year. What We Need in 2012 There are five practices we can embrace to continue this trend. 1. Extravagant Generosity. 2. Passionate Worship. 3. Intentional Faith Development. 4. Risk-taking Mission. 5. Radical Hospitality First, we need every disciple to give something. Make a formal commitment to give to Trinity s budget. If you can t give 10% of your income, give an amount your family can manage. The amount is not important; the giving is. We still need about 75 (family units) pledge cards that we received last year to complete our budget for 2012 and hope to receive new pledge gifts from first-time givers. Additional gifts would increase needed staff, including some part-time pastoral care, marketing, and music for children s choirs, 8:30 worship, and other groups. A larger budget would also assist in reaching out better through technology, including projectors, a digital sign, new website, online worship streaming, direct mail cards, and facility maintenance and upgrades as needed. We also need more Trinity disciples involved in ministries. We need more teachers, more folks involved in mission, and members faith-sharing with their friends. We re redesigning our greeter program and hope to expand it to make sure every guest s visit is radically hospitable, that we go out of our way to introduce ourselves and welcome all people. We want to go out of our way to attract visitors, as we did with our December 23 Christmas Eve Eve worship. We also had a push for small groups in 2011, but need more facilitators willing to lead. We need to improve 8:30 worship and consider options for new worship services at other times. We need to develop community events, like the one Mr. Paul is doing in March, a community-wide Dr. Seuss birthday party that will target families and local schools. We need an older adult ministry. My list is long, and it won t all happen this year, but we ve made great progress in six months. We don t need to lose any more time. The United Methodists have good theology, good mission, good worship, good disciples, and we need to be here in the future. Trinity needs to be a strong Midtown presence to change our community and the lives in it. If you would like to hear more about the COR experience and discuss the vision for our future, please contact me at revbsb@aol.com or or call or Doug Collins at or doug@collinsconsultinginc.com to schedule a time when your Sunday school class or small group can hear the COR presentation. We want feedback, discussion, and ideas as we seek to build a Christian community where non-religious and nominally religious people are becoming deeply committed Christians. We support TUMC by our Prayers Julie McCaghey, Rev. Holly Patton, Jerry Kossover, Peter and Joann Guresky, Clay Price, Travis Tunnell, Rev. David Moore, Georgeann Osam, Alene Adkins, Jana Koonce, Maggie Moore, Steve Owens, Sally Kenworthy, Henry Solis, Steve Owens, Andrea Hines, Jack Weaver, Rubye Glaze, Jon Newman, Sona Plyler, Ron Elders, Jackson Faulkner, Mary Frances Hodges, Christian English, Toni Wilson, Nadine Renfro, Joe Baskin, Germaine Schaefer, Wini and Dick Carter, Katy Elkins, Molly Lunt, Judy Brooks, Ginny Brumback, Luby Terry, Tacy Reed, Nannie Ola Carroll, JoAnn Lane, Martha Delacey, Turkey earthquake victims. Trinity members active in the military: Dylan Blancett, Will Goggans, Derek Hays. Trinity Members active in the Military: Dylan Blancett, Will Goggans, Derek Hays Sympathy Presence Date: January 1 Sunday School 235 Worship 234 Visitors 20 January 8 Sunday School 144 Worship 417 Visitors 45 Gifts and Service... Serving God, Serving One Another Rev. Betsy Snyder David Glaze Paul Owen Jay Sweningson Laura Hofman Judy Gribble Tammy Childress Gordon Kumpuris revbsb@aol.com DAGMusic@tumclr.org powen@tumclr.org jay@tumclr.org laurahales@tumclr.org judy@tumclr.org tammyc@tumclr.org arpaddler@gmail.com Peace, Rev. Betsy

10 Trinity United Methodist Church 1101 N Mississippi Little Rock, AR Non-profit Org U.S. Postage PAID Little Rock, AR Permit No Address Service Requested Trinity United Methodist Church 1101 N Mississippi Little Rock, AR Office Hours: M-Th 8:30-4:30 Friday 8:30-4: Fax Visit us on Facebook Rev. Betsy s emergency # Come to CARE Headquarters to meet and greet our Paws in Prison Dogs All are AKC Good Citizen Trained. Headquarters 5516 Kavanaugh (next to US Pizza) Saturday, January 14 11am 2:00pm